Who we are
by Strykeruk
Summary: In the city of Rio life is good as carnival approaches. Its been a year since their arrival and Nico and his sister Janet are enjoying life. However not everyone is pleased with their happiness and a new darkness allies with the old to end the joy of Rio. Sequel to 'Birds of a feather' and 'Snow day'
1. Morning pranks

**Authors note-Hello once again everyone Strykeruk here with a new chapter for a new story! :D It's great to back and I hope you will all enjoy this story. I decided to upload this now in order to celebrate the totally awesome release of RIO 2 and again I hope you will all enjoy it. I would like to remind everyone that this is a sequel to 'Birds of a feather' and the short story 'Snow Day' and you should read them before you start reading this. Now on with the show!**

The city of Rio was a gem, highlighted against the cerulean waters of the ocean by its golden beaches. The jungles surrounding it were verdant and emerald green. The city itself shone with light and thrummed with life. Even at night there were birds going to and from the cities various attractions. All things told it was something to inspire and invigorate. Yet for a few twisted hearts the city represented something quite different.

"I'd almost forgotten" He looked down at the city shining below in the night. Even from this far the sounds of laughter and partying could be heard.

"Quite something isn't it" Bruno said in hushed tones standing next to him. "All those birds, free to do as they wish and none of them even know what a gift that is."

"Then we should show them". An eager tone entered his voice at the thought of the chaos they were about to bring.

"All in good time." Seeing his dissatisfied expression Bruno decided to explain "it will be all the more satisfying for he wait. Besides, we need information." Looking down at the city again he straightened up. "And we won't get it resting here." Seeing his companion remained motionless he turned to him. "Jericho?"

Jericho looked at him slowly with a vacant expression. He quickly snapped back to the present and nodded

"Let's go" he said before jumping off his branch and gliding towards the city, leaving Bruno staring after him before he too took flight and headed down towards the city.

XXX

Janet opened her eyes blearily looking at the roof of her hollow. She tried to get back to sleep but as she rolled over in her nest a loose twig managed to poke her sharply in the ribs.

"Ouch!" She snapped upright before glaring at the offending twig in annoyance. Picking it up she threw it out of the hollow. Sighing she realised that any hopes of sleep were now futile. She slowly stretched feeling her shoulders pop as she massaged feeling back into her left wing which had pins and needles after she'd clearly been sleeping on it. That done she vaulted herself out of her nest and walked over to a small stainless steel tray she used as a mirror.

Janet was a yellow canary like her brother Nico, whilst they shared many of the same features she had blue eyes compared to her brothers brown ones. Whilst anyone who knew them could tell them apart easily, especially since Nico got his signature bottle cap, barely a day went by when someone didn't comment on how similar they were.

Looking into her mirror Janet saw her feathers were completely ruffled and out of place. Several of them were facing in the wrong direction and Janet recognised a bit of a clean-up was in order if she wanted to look better than half dead. The last few days had been hectic with Rio filled with birds visiting for Carnival and she'd hardly had any rest. What with the constant party's (more than a few of which she'd sung at), mostly at her favourite new club. It was called the Branch and it was taking advantage of the new visitors by holding as many open-mike nights as possible. Janet was aiming to make an impression in the hopes she could get a similar kind of deal to what her brother and Pedro had going at the Paradise club.

However all the activity had taken its toll on her and she relished the day off she had since most of the clubs were closed the day before Carnival in order to prepare for the 24 hours of constant celebration ahead. Quickly she smoothed down as many of her feathers as she could before walking over to the entrance to her hollow. Seeing the slight sunlight coming into the clearing she guessed it was probably early morning which meant her brother was likely still asleep, the same went for Pedro as they were both just as bad as her if not worse since they were one of the main acts at the Paradise club.

"Morning sleeping beauty" She heard a voice to her right call. Looking over she saw Frankie lying on a miniature deck chair he'd retrofitted to suit a bird. He'd made dozens of them for birds around the jungle and they were making him very popular. She was slightly surprised to see him as he was usually off in the city.

"Hey Frankie" she said with a wave before flying up onto his branch. Being higher up it was a bit more exposed but also gave a better view since Frankie had cleared away some of the canopy in front of his entrance to give him a view towards the city. She knew it helped him relax, especially at night when the city lit up.

"Are you always up this early?" She asked

"Only when I'm thinking." Seeing her curious expression he quickly carried on. "There are thousands of birds in Rio and even more animals who constantly want to know, 'where's the best food?', 'where's the next good show?' and they expect people like me to know." Seeing she still wasn't quite sure what he meant he continued

"For example, do you have any idea how many birds try to get me to let them meet you, Nico and Pedro? Dozens, especially near carnival."

"I had no idea." Janet was actually surprised she got any attention at all. There were plenty of good singers in Rio.

"Oh yeah, you three are stars of the Ipanema." His expression softened when he saw Janet looking slightly guilty.

"Hey don't worry. It's my fault for piggy-backing onto your fame. I shoulda known that trying to fast track my way to my old NYC status would backfire. And don't worry about people bothering you. One thing I've noticed is that city birds tend to get lost in the jungle." Thinking back to their first few attempts to navigate Janet grinned and found herself glad again for Rafael who'd helped them out so much.

Deciding to change the subject Frankie asked "So where are you going at such a time? Performance?"

"Nope, today I'm free. I was going to head off and get myself cleaned up." She gestured at her ruffled feathers and slightly ragged talons. She wasn't what you'd call appearance obsessed but she had her limits and this was it. Frankie on the other hand was well kept and Janet had rarely seen him otherwise.

"Fair enough" Frankie said chuckling "I didn't want to say anything but you need it." He grinned again "I'll keep watch for your brother for you."

"Thanks Frankie" Janet said falling backwards with a whoop before looping underneath Frankie's branch and appearing on the other side. "Catch you later" She said before zipping off into the undergrowth.

XXX

The two of them sat on top of a small house in one of Rio Di Janeiro's many Favelas. Surveying the vast city made it seem impossible to find anything. Mentioning this to Bruno got a brief acknowledgment.

"There's always a hard part to grabbing someone. If they're famous they're easy to find but hard to actually kidnap without drawing too much attention. If they aren't then they can be impossible to find but easily removed from their environment." Jericho looked at him sardonically.

"Well aren't you just the amazing super-sleuth." Jericho said mockingly "If you're such an expert why did you need my help with your femme fatale and why do you need me now?"

Without warning Bruno spun on the spot and backhanded Jericho across the roof. As he landed Jericho flipped backwards onto his feet, using the metal talons on his left claw to slow him, crouching low and with a murderous expression in his eyes. Seeing Bruno motionless however he slowly straightened up.

"Jericho, you are an accomplice, an assistant, and a very useful ally but never make the mistake of thinking I need you. Unfortunately there are three of them and only one of me. And they know me, I'd never get close. You however are an unknown entity." Jericho moved closer but kept a close eye on Bruno this time.

"So what you're saying is that I am… wanted because I can do your dirty work." Jericho wasn't sure what he expected but it wasn't for Bruno to suddenly start laughing.

"The dirty work?" No dear Jericho you are merely bringing them to me. That's when the dirty work really begins."

Once Jericho might have been cowed by the manic glint in Bruno's eyes but he had his own madness which allowed him to stare Bruno in the eye without flinching. Looking back down towards most of the city he could see the Sun hovering over the sea whilst the morning songs of Rio's more vocal inhabitants, human and avian started to echo in the air.

"So how are we going to find them?" he mused.

"Simple." Bruno said patronisingly. "We, and by that I mean you, ask." Seeing Jericho grin he added "Nicely. No need to arouse suspicion".

"You said they were talented?" Jericho asked musingly

"One of them, a girl, her name is Janet. Her brother Nico was barely worth noticing."

"Until he followed you across a continent and rescued her you mean." Jericho interrupted snidely.

Ignoring him Bruno continued. "They had help from some infuriating Sparrow, I know very little about him. But it's his fault **she** got away". With the emphasis on the 'she' it was clear to Jericho who Bruno was talking about, but he figured silence was a wise choice on this topic. Instead he ignored it.

"Sparrows are quite common. Finding him might be impossible in a city like this, especially at Carnival." Jericho mused

"Don't worry Jericho, once the Canaries are in our grasp the Sparrow will be easy to narrow down."

"But first we need to get the Canaries. I'll start in the Copacabana area. You should probably stick to the Jungle. It reduces the chance of one of them spotting you." Before moving Jericho turned back to Bruno "If we do find them, where do we take them?"

"I'll find something. Till then start searching. Meet back here come nightfall." With that Bruno took off towards the Jungle leaving Jericho to turn towards the city and its beaches with a slight smile.

XXX

A few minutes after leaving Frankie Janet finally reached the small stream near to the hollows. Sighing in relief she flew over to a small rock about a meter away from the stream. Lifting it up she found her small stash consisting of a brush and a piece of her mirror she'd managed to work free. The brush was just simple bristles but it did the job of getting rid of any stubborn dirt. It also let her keep it stored outside without worrying about it getting damaged. The mirror piece was also equally durable and despite being slightly bent it was enough to let her see what needed doing. Setting them both on the rock she quickly flew up a meter before cannonballing into the stream. When she floated back up to the surface she started to ruffle her feathers to make sure the water was able to get all the dirt off.

After a couple of minutes swimming around she got out and walked over to the rock with her mirror and brush. Looking in it she was pleased to see that the worst of the dust was gone and even some of the looser feathers had worked free. Despite this she could spot more stubborn ones that remained out of place. Sighing she picked up her brush and dragged it through her feathers. It wasn't the most accurate or comfortable action but it did the job of working free many of worst offenders. It also let her reach her back far more easily than otherwise.

After a couple of minutes she repeated the process, jumping into the water before brushing herself. She did this twice, each time the difference in appearance became smaller. Finally she nodded in satisfaction as she checked herself in the mirror. She'd have to do some preening and fine tuning when she'd dried off but for now at least she was passably presentable. She spent the next five minutes filing her talons against the edge of the mirror piece before deciding they were acceptable. Hiding her brush and mirror back under the rock she ruffled her feathers and jumped upwards flying up above the canopy where the sun was shining fully across the treetops. Flying languidly back towards the hollows she smiled contentedly as she felt the warm sun slowly dry her off.

XXX

Frankie was still resting on his chair enjoying the view of the city of Rio slowly waking up. He could just spot the slight blurs of movement that represented the large crowds of people and machines that always appeared with the beginning and end of the day. Despite that there was still no activity from the hollows below him. However he was sure that was about to change, the one thing that was reliable about Nico's schedule was how much he slept. He wasn't a morning person, something that hadn't changed since his days in New York. Despite this he always woke up earlier than someone who stayed out as late as he did had any right to do. If he were a cynical bird Frankie would guess that Pedro's habit of pranking Nico had something to do that.

"Speak of the devil" Frankie muttered to himself as he peered over the edge of his branch.

Below him Frankie could see Pedro glancing out of his hollow towards Nico's. Grinning Pedro flew higher and Frankie saw he was carrying a small hollowed out nut full of water. Frankie was tempted to call out a warning but was stopped when he saw a light shadow flit across the entrance to Nico's home. Leaning back Frankie decided to relax and let things play out.

A minute later he was rewarded by a sudden cry of surprise that was cut short followed by the sound of water splashing and a sudden flurry of flight. Looking back at Nico's hollow, Frankie saw Pedro leap out through the entrance dripping with water. One look at his panicked expression and Frankie couldn't help bursting into laughter.

Noticing the attention Pedro's expression quickly changed to one of righteous indignation when Nico walked out of his home, his signature bottle cap firmly in place. Hearing Frankie he turned towards him and waved in greeting.

"Hey Frankie" he called before he noticed Pedro's expression.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad" he said in protest. "It's your own fault for trying to soak me." Seeing Pedro stubbornly hold his head up he tried a different tactic.

"Come on Pedro, you know you can't stay mad at someone as mega-dope as me". Nico then took his cap off and using his own momentum he did a wing-stand on it and spun on the spot.

Despite himself Frankie stared in surprise and couldn't help being impressed. That would have been tough even were he not on a rough tree branch. He could see Pedro was equally impressed but trying not to show it. As Nico stopped and landed back on his feet, Pedro clapped causing Nico to take a light bow.

"Alright that was super-cool." Pedro admitted "but you were way sneakier earlier than you have any right to be" both of them were grinning now and how they could constantly prank each other but stay such fast-friends and make up near instantaneously always impressed Frankie.

"Hey what can I say, growing up with a sister teaches you how to move quietly." At the mention of Janet, Nico looked around questioningly. Seeing his searching look Frankie knew what to say before he asked.

"She went to the stream." Nico didn't respond but just looked at Frankie and raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Hey, I'm not her minder." Frankie said defensively. Nico still didn't respond.

"She said she had a free day today." Frankie said

"She can look after herself and she'll probably be back soon." As Frankie kept on talking Pedro looked on, slightly bemused at the apparently one-sided conversation. Before it could carry on they were interrupted by a fluttering set of wing beats.

"Nico." Janet flitted over to them. "Leave Frankie alone." She said jokingly.

"I didn't say anything" Nico protested.

"Uh-huh" Janet said adopting a pose on the branch next to him exactly the same as Nico's had been with an eyebrow raised.

Frankie chuckled, seeing Nico start to squirm in the same way he had been moments ago. '_Now I know where he got it from' _He thought.

"Damn you have got to teach me that doom-stare!" Pedro suddenly broke in.

"Nope" Janet said quickly.

"Family secret" Nico said immediately after her. They then quickly low-fived each other and grinned stupidly.

Pedro looked confused at the suddenly united defence. He looked up at Frankie

"Do they do this to you too?"

"All too often." Frankie replied making both of the Canaries look at him.

"Hey, no we don't" Janet said.

"Yeah we'd never stoop so low as to gang up on anyone". Nico added.

They all looked at each other. Nico and Janet tried desperately to maintain serious expressions but at the sight of Frankie and Pedro's wide eyed faces quickly lost their composure and started laughing. Frankie just looked at Pedro and shrugged.

"Twins eh?" as that was all the answer needed.

XXX

Bruno sat atop a high branch staring out across the Jungle, hidden by the foliage he struggled to see anything of note, just a sea of green with the odd flash of colour. Jericho, despite his assurances to the contrary, had been right. It would be near impossible to find anyone without arousing suspicion. But then, that's what he'd brought his erstwhile ally along for. He'd always had a knack for finding others.

XXX

He couldn't see her. He rarely could. Even in captivity he had always glossed over her, refusing to acknowledge her, and the pain she'd bring. It had taken some time but she'd finally come to understand why, she had him trapped in bars of his own making. That was why he was obsessed with his own 'freedom' and determined that no one else could have what he was denied. Hidden from sight as she observed him she watched and waited. She knew he would eventually fail. If not now, then in the future. Because Bruno would never be able to deny freedom to others, when he did not have the power to grant it to himself.

**Authors note- Well there we go. I hope that if you've made it to the end you found my story likeable. As always if you want to leave a review or drop me a PM they are always welcome and I will try to answer your questions. I hope to see you all again in the next chapter of 'Who we are'**

**Strykeruk out.**


	2. Plan for the day

**Authors' note- Hi everybody, Strykeruk here. I'm going to be honest. I lost interest in this fanfic for a while. I am really sorry to anyone who waited for another update. It was a combination of writers block, life problems and simply not being motivated that stopped me. However I hope to make it up to you now with this new chapter and hopefully more to come. So please read on and enjoy :)**

After their laughter had finally stopped Janet and Nico composed themselves, wiping tears from their eyes and breathing deeply they supressed the odd giggle.

"Oh man." Nico said "nothing like a good laugh to start the day." Looking over at Janet he noticed her fresh appearance. "Hey Janet you're looking good today, what's the occasion?"

"The occasion oh brother of mine is that some of us like to look presentable." She retorted, looking pointedly at Nico.

"Oh how you wound me!" Nico cried in mock horror.

Rolling her eyes Janet saw Pedro still dripping with water. "At least Pedro washes."

Before he could help himself Nico snorted with amusement but clamped his beak shut to avoid laughing.

"What?" Janet asked wondering what she'd said. She looked to Pedro who sighed and briefly explained what had happened, only stopping once when Nico indignantly corrected an attempt to portray him as the aggressor. When Pedro was finished Janet looked at Pedro sternly.

"Oh come on! It was just a joke." Pedro said defensively.

"No wonder Nico doesn't lie in" Janet responded. Knowing Nico must have been smirking behind her she added a little barb to the comment. "I mean really Pedro he needs all the beauty sleep he can get."

"Hey!" Replied Nico. Above them Frankie was still watching at what was happening and was thoroughly enjoying the back and forth banter down below.

"Well to nip this argument in the bud then." He called down, making them look up at him in surprise, as if they'd forgotten he was there. "It appears that the first order of business for us is getting Nico to bathe."

"Oh come on guys" Nico said seeing the conspiratorial looks between the three other. Before he could decide on what to do Pedro and Frankie flew at him. He jumped away but Frankie was able to tackle him thanks to his speed boost from falling. This sent them both spiralling off the tree branch where they hit the leaf covered ground winded. Frankie rolled off him but just as Nico managed to stand up a torrent of water poured onto him. Whilst his bottle cap protected him from most of it he was still drenched. Gasping, Nico took off his bottle cap to clear the water off it and his face but instead found another burst of water hitting his head, completing the soaking. Looking up slowly he saw Janet hanging onto the edge of a giant leaf that had clearly been full of water until a moment ago. Scowling he watched as Janet glided down to hover about a meter away from him whilst Frankie and Pedro sate of to one side grinning madly.

"I thought you just told Pedro off for trying to get me wet?" Nico said accusingly.

"Nope, I told him off for disturbing your sleep. Nothing wrong with drenching you whilst you're awake and therefore, fair game." She grinned at her brother's annoyance knowing that she should enjoy it whilst she could as he'd inevitably find a way to get her back.

"Well now that Nico's impromptu bath is over, what's the plan for the day?" Frankie asked

"What do you mean?" said Nico as he carefully replaced his cap onto his head.

"Well Janet here has a free day since the clubs are all preparing for carnival and since neither of you two seem to be in any hurry" he pointed at Nico and Pedro "I'd guess the same is true for you."

"You'd guess correctly my man" Pedro responded jumping up from where he'd been sitting down. "And I for one need to chillax before the big partay tomorrow. Therefore I cast my vote for a trip to the beach."

"Now that's an idea I can get behind." Nico said cheerfully. "How about you two?" He asked looking at Janet and Frankie.

"Sounds good" Said Janet "But I'm going to grab something to eat first" Seeing Nico about to pipe up she quickly added "Don't worry only a light snack, I'm not going swimming on a full stomach. I'll only be a few minutes behind you." She glanced at Frankie since he was the last to decide.

"Sure I'll come too, I just need to pack up and lock up" he said gesturing to his chair and hollow. "You never know who's going to go through your stuff." Frankie was a bit paranoid about his hollow, apparently something he'd picked up from his days in New York. Nico, Janet and Pedro thought it a little excessive how secure his place was, especially Pedro. One day he'd decided to try to prank Frankie the same way he did Nico and had spent the next two hours hanging upside down from a rope trap attached to Frankie's ceiling before being found. Needless to say he'd left Frankie's hollow well alone after that.

"Well come on then!" Pedro eagerly shouted, grabbing Nico's wing before taking flight in the direction of the city. Janet chuckled whilst Nico just shrugged his shoulders and followed Pedro. They were both quickly out of sight and Janet turned back to Frankie.

"I suppose that's my cue as well" She said.

"Sure, I'll catch you in a bit." Frankie responded before flying back up to his hollow entrance and grabbing his chair. Janet just stretched her wings before taking flight and heading off towards Rio.

XXX

Nico and Pedro flew together over the city of Rio towards the beaches. The city below them was full of people and cars, even more than usual because of the sudden influx of visitors for Carnival. Despite that Nico knew it was only going to get more crowded as the day wore on and tomorrow arrived. Just as they were nearing the beach and flying just above the cars they heard a commotion ahead. Slowing down they noticed it was a small crowd of partyers who were holding up some traffic as they crossed the road. Never ones to miss a quick bit of fun they both landed on a crate in the back of a small jeep that was at the front of the traffic and right next to the music. As Pedro bopped to the beat Nico tapped out a rhythm on his bottle cap and sang along to it although it wasn't what would usually be qualified as singing. Spotting movement they both saw a birds head pop out from below and look at them. They both realised at the same time that the crate was in fact a large cage.

"Hey" Nico said grabbing his cap and plonking it back on his head. He and Pedro both flew down to the side of the cage where they could better see the other bird.

"Tudo bom?" Nico said which seemed to quickly fluster the other bird who bent down to grab something whilst mumbling words. Looking at him Nico thought he looked a lot like a macaw like Victor and Felipe except he was entirely blue. Popping back up the macaw had a Portuguese dictionary but before he could actually read anything he dropped it out of his cage. Looking sheepishly back up he started gesticulating wildly.

"Uh, I, am not from here." He said, over pronouncing each word.

"Hey Nico, he's a tourist" Pedro said gesturing at the other bird.

"That's funny." Nico said raising an eye "you don't look like one."

This seemed to catch the other bird off guard. "Really? I, I don't?"

"Except you got pigeon doo-doo on your nose" Pedro said pointing at his nose and cringing slightly. Nico had assumed it was sun-cream and looked at Pedro oddly before checking the other bird again.

"Oh, oh no, this is just SPF 3000" the blue macaw replied whilst quickly rubbing it off his beak.

Nico flew over to the cage and clung to one of its bars figuring the bird was harmless whilst Pedro sat in the corner of the cage window.

"So, are you here for Carnival?" Nico asked rolling his cap across both wings before plonking it back on his head.

"Oh, actually I'm here to meet a, uh, a girl." The macaw replied shyly.

"Ah, a girl" Nico said propping himself in a corner.

"Yes" Pedro said knowingly. Looking at the macaw Nico realised this guy would need a lot of help.

"Little word of advice, you make the first move." He flew over to Pedro who quickly faced away. "Brazilian ladies respond to confidence" Nico said twirling Pedro round and getting him to fall backwards.

"Oh, right." The blue bird seemed unsure.

"Yeah!" Pedro said, bursting back to life. "It's all about swagger, you got to pump out that chest, swing that tail" He gave helpful but hilarious demonstrations. "Eyes narrow, like some kind of crazy love hawk" Pedro finished off with crazy attempt at a hawk call.

"But first we got to bust you out!" Nico interjected.

"Wait what?" the macaw said.

"Yeah, I'm gonna pop that cage open like a soda can!" Pedro said doing kung-fo moves in the air with Nico obligingly letting him kick his cap up slightly.

"No, no, no, no, no" the macaw started to say before Pedro launched himself at one of the bars with a shriek. Despite repeated attempt he was unable to even bend the bar.

"You call that popping?" Nico asked in dismay flying up to him.

"Phew, this thing is robust" Pedro responded panting slightly at the exertion.

"No, no, no guys that's okay really, the cage is great. Love the cage." The macaw said hugging the cage bars which kind of creeped Nico and Pedro out.

"Va bom, suit yourself" Nico said realising the traffic was about to get moving again and that the Macaw would have to stay in the cage he loved so much. On that not he decided to move.

"Hey don't forget, love hawk" Pedro added before following Pedro.

"Good luck" Nico called in Portuguese which he saw the bird puzzle over and call something back just before they got out of sight. He shook his head in dismay.

"That guy is gonna need some kinda luck to get with any girl, but our advice should see him straight though. He's just gotta channel the inner love hawk." Pedro said which made Nico raise his eye slightly.

"What?" Pedro asked "It works for me"

"If he's got a love hawk it is seriously repressed." Nico said before waving his wings as if to clear his head of the matter. "But, back to the matter at hand, that beach is tantalisingly close" he added looking at the waterfront only a stone's throw away.

"And so is that hot dog stand" Pedro noted before charging ahead.

"Wait what?" Nico said in surprise "Pedro!" he shouted in dismay before zipping after him as fast as he could.

XXX

Janet zigged and zagged between the various buildings of Rio in one of the more affluent areas. Several of the buildings had substantial gardens and there was one in particular that she was headed for.

Quickly the garden in question appeared ahead and Janet quickly flew into one of the large bushes inside the perimeter fence. Looking through the leaves she could see her goal, a large bird-feeder shaped like a doughnut which was currently empty. The garden was quite popular thanks to two things: One the owners were allergic to cats and made sure to keep the garden free of them, and one of them also happened to be a bird enthusiast who made sure to always have some food ready. Most birds simply guessed at timings but Janet had tried to figure out the schedule for the re-fills.

Her effort was quickly rewarded when a young man walked out into the garden and, unscrewing the top of the feeder, proceeded to pour bird food into it. Despite some spilt seeds he was quickly done and hung the feeder back in the branches of a tree before walking back most of the way and sitting in a chair patiently. Waiting for a few minutes Janet realised he wasn't going anywhere so she carefully started to make her way towards the feeder. Despite her best efforts bright yellow is not the most subtle colour and she was quickly spotted.

About halfway to the food she saw the young man's eyes fix on her but to her relief he simply stayed put. With stealth now pointless she simply flew the rest of the way and latched onto one of the openings on the feeder. She froze when she saw the man move slightly but relaxed when she realised he was simply turning a camera on. Quickly she turned back and looked at the opening seeing dozens of seeds and nuts in the feeder. Grinning she quickly tucked in and started choosing her favourites. Having satisfied herself she shot another glance at the young man who seemed content to simply watch. Deciding to say thank you for the food she dropped off the feeder and performed some aerial acrobatics much to the mans obvious surprise before flying out of sight over the gardens walls and off towards the beach. As she looked back she realised her timing had been perfect as several other birds were started to squabble over the limited feeding space.

XXX

(Warning, violence (the reason for the T rating))

_"This_ _is hopeless"_ Thought Jericho as he flew between the walls of another set of rundown buildings. He'd yet to find anything about his quarry despite their supposed fame. Birds in the city were either clueless or simply uncooperative, either way his temper was starting to fray and he was beginning to regret agreeing to ask people nicely. alighting on a small, shaded roof he decided to get his bearings and energy back. As he leaned against the edge of the roof he heard several birds landing behind him.

"Hey! Whatch ya doin on ma roof?!"

Turning around Jericho saw quartet of birds standing around him. They were all different species but had worn and rough looks and clearly weren't the kind who you'd want to meet. One of them who was slightly taller than the others and was clearly the one who'd spoken angrily stepped towards him.

"I asked you a question boy". The bully was obviously used to getting his way and was grating on Jericho's few remaining nerves. However he decided to try the nice approach one last time.

"I was simply resting and will be gone soon. However I don't suppose any of you know of a young canary by the name of Janet?" He said softly and in his best behaviour voice.

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't." Replied the bird in front of him, however the glimmer of recognition in his eyes that he'd failed to hide had sealed his fate. One way or another Jericho was ending his search.

"Tell me everything you know." He asked hoping the bird in front of him would be smart for once.

"Well my memories a little fussy but a little payment would surely help. That fancy claw of yours would do nicely" he said dashing Jericho's hopes and gesturing at the intricate set of talons on Jericho's left claw.

"No" Was Jericho's only response all vestiges of civility gone.

"I'm not sure that I was asking" the bird quickly motioned to his accomplices who launched themselves at Jericho.

Waiting till the last second Jericho pivoted away from the wall before placing a claw on the back of the first assailants head and using his own momentum to make him crash into the roofs wall. He then used that same momentum to push himself upwards and slam his clenched metal talons into his second assailants jaw in a vicious uppercut. He then brought his claw downwards using gravity and it's weight to crack onto the final birds head and make him land on the roof with a thud.

Moments after the fight had begun it was over and all three assailants were unconscious in a pile on the roof. Their leader stood slack-jawed whilst he struggled to comprehend what had just happened. As Jericho landed slowly and advanced towards him however he snapped out of it and fell over backwards trying to get away as his scrambled towards the roofs edge.

Looming over him Jericho locked the claws of his metal talon around his throat drawing small lines of blood which began to stain his feathers.

"Now where were we?" Jericho pondered his voice menacing and promising no mercy. "Ah yes, you were going to tell me everything."

XXX

Frankie finished the final set of his homes security and looked around his hollow which seemed normal if you weren't observant. Satisfied that it was in order he turned and slipped out of a small hidden hatch in the back of his home before replacing it's leafy camouflage and setting off for the beach. He knew the others thought he was paranoid but he'd learnt long ago that being prepared was well worth the effort and it had only been Nico's intervention and their first encounter with each other that had saved him. He'd even helped Rafael with a few simple traps, although whether to protect his home or himself from his kids he wasn't sure. Grinning he put thoughts of the past behind him and enjoyed flying through the warm air that drifted in from the sea and seemed to encourage him towards his destination.

**Hey everyone, that was the chapter and it was a little short but I needed to get the old creative juices flowing again ;) Anyway please leave a review or favourite my story if you liked it and as always if you have a question feel free to PM me. I hope to get another chapter done in less time than this one, although that's not saying much. I look forward to seeing you next chapter.**

**Strykeruk out.**


	3. Beach time

**Hey Everybody, Strykeruk here with _another_ chapter for 'Who we are'. Things are going to start getting more interesting soon but for now another slightly more gentle chapter. Enjoy.**

He'd eaten the whole thing! Nico just stood staring at him in disbelief. Pedro had over the course of ten minutes managed to eat an entire hotdog. That didn't sound impressive until you realised that it had been almost as big as him and he'd been able to do so whilst avoiding Nico's attempts to make him stop. Truly when Pedro was focused there was no stopping him. Of course now he was lying on the ground under the hot dog stand in a semi-conscious state.

"urgh..." he moaned and tried to sit up only to fall backwards due to the seeming impossibility of the task.

"Well now how are we supposed enjoy the beach?" Nico asked, staring at his immobile friend.

"We can. Still. Enjoy. The beach." Pedro replied haltingly. He struggled to sit up groaning as he did so before slowly standing up. Nico proceeded to follow him as he staggered across the beach to a small pile of rocks that had been half buried in the sand. Pedro promptly slumped against the rocks with a sigh of relief.

"I'm just gonna, rest here a bit. Just for a second..." he trailed off as he relaxed against the warm sand and rocks. Nico simply shook his head in amusement that anyone could fall asleep so soon after waking up. Looking around he couldn't see anyone and realised they were in a pretty safe spot as far as the beach went. Glancing back at the now snoring Pedro he grinned mischievously before twirling his bottle cap off of his head and started scooping up sand, whistling as he did.

XXX

Janet glided over the last few rooftops that separated her from the beach. Just before arriving she landed on one of the beachfront café rooftops. In the year they'd been living in Rio she'd quickly found that this was one of her favourite views. It didn't match the sense of scale you could get from the Redeemer statue or the beauty of watching sunsets from their home but the sight of the beach filled with people laughing, running around, playing games of varying descriptions or simply relaxing in the sun always made her smile. The sheer energy of the beach rarely failed to cheer her up. Her quick flight across the city had left her slightly peckish however and, seeing no sign of Nico or Pedro, decided to grab a bite to eat first. Looking over the edge of the café roof she scanned the customers and found a couple who seemed perfect:

Holding hands? Check. Wearing lots of sun _protection?_ Check. Leftover food on the table? Check.

Her quick summary pointed out several things, they had spare food, they were in a good mood and more likely to share and finally they were probably tourists here for carnival. They'd be less inclined to shoo away birds and more inclined to being impressed. Nodding at her analysis she quickly dove down to the ground before hovering and alighting on the railing that separated café from street next to the couple. Clearing her throat she began to whistle cheerfully. It was only a couple of moments before one of the couple noticed her.

"Oh, honey look!" she said quietly as if trying not to make Janet jump (a thought that made Janet roll her eyes unperceptively). Both of the young couple watched Janet in seeming awe at how close she'd gotten. After a minute or so the young man slowly picked up a tiny bit of apple and went to slowly give it to her. Now whilst Janet was perhaps more comfortable than most around humans she still had her limits, in part due to prior experience, and quickly jumped back along the rail out of reach. The man quickly put the apple down and backed away a bit whilst Janet noticed the woman slowly lifting up her camera. Suddenly glad she'd had the chance to clean earlier Janet decided a couple of holiday pictures were a fair trade for a snack. She slowly wondered over to the apple piece and took a couple of bites allowing the lady to take her pictures before she quickly took off into the air with a now much fuller stomach.

XXX

Frankie flew casually over Rio. One of the advantages to being a sparrow, especially in a city with so many vibrant species was that you largely went unnoticed. This was particularly useful when everyone wanted to get your attention. He silently gave thanks to this fact as he saw several birds who would otherwise have been begging for his attention simply ignore him as he went sailing past. It was also a life lesson that he tried to take to heart. It was often the most innocuous things that could be the most important, especially when trying to find information that was usually hidden.

He was still ruminating on this when caught sight of the beach and realised he had no idea where to start looking for the others.

"Nico!" Frankie heard Janet shout. _'Well that answers that question'_ he thought. He quickly turned towards where the shout had come from curious to find out what had got the two siblings going this time. He quickly came upon the small collection of rocks that had two bright yellow canaries engaged in heated discussion. He quickly flew down and landed a few paces away before realising they were one short.

"Hey guys, erm where's Pedro?". Nico and Janet looked at him. Nico seeming a little bit sheepish took a step to the side to reveal a sleeping Pedro, or at least his head. The rest of him from the neck down was buried in sand.

"You buried him!" Frankie shouted in surprise.

"Hey, it's not my fault he decided to eat an entire freaking hotdog and then fall asleep. I was just making sure he didn't burn." Nico replied grinning.

"No man, that's hilarious!" Frankie replied which earned him a glare from Janet.

"He wasn't going to burn, that's what feathers are for. And besides, what if someone finds him?" Janet asked.

"Don't worry, I'm watching." Nico responded.

"It doesn't matter, we should dig him out." Janet said giving the signature death-stare.

"Awww come on, at least let us wake him up first. It'll be priceless." Seeing Janet pause for thought both Frankie and Nico joined forces.

"Pleeeeease?" they said in unison trying their utmost to persuade her.

"Oh alright then." Janet relented with a grin which got a corresponding set of smiles from Nico and Frankie. Nico quickly jumped into the air and flew over to the sea, hovering over the water he used his cap to scoop up some over the sea-water. He then carefully hovered over to Pedro with the cap clutched in his talons.

Frankie quickly stepped back just before Nico upended the cap straight onto Pedro's head. As the water cascaded onto him Pedro quickly gasped and went from deep sleep to hyper-alert.

"Gah!" he cried before beginning to panic as he realised he couldn't move. However as the water flow stopped he quickly became aware of the two canaries and one sparrow rolling on the sand laughing uncontrollably. Looking down at his body he saw the sand covering him and quickly pieced together what had happened.

"Nico!" he shouted whilst squirming desperately to dislodge himself. The sight of this only set the three conspirators off laughing again. This continued unabated for the next five minutes with little success on Pedro's part, until finally he gave up and stopped moving, exhausted by the effort.

"Okay guys, very funny, you win. Now let me out!" he said in a defeated tone.

"I don't know Pedro, I think the bodiless look suits you" Janet teased.

"Besides, the tides coming in and I don't fancy getting my feathers wet." Frankie lied, struggling to contain his mirth at the panicked expression that filled Pedro's face before being replaced by annoyance as he realised he was lying.

As they were chuckling Frankie's inner paranoia kicked in, looking around he didn't see anything wrong. However he did notice that there were several humans wandering in their direction.

"Uh, guys. People." He said pointing in their direction.

Seeing who he was referring to everyone quickly agreed it was past time to get Pedro out and they started digging into the sand around him with gusto.

"I'm still going swimming after this you know." Pedro stated defiantly.

XXX

Jericho was sat on the rooftop surrounded by his unconscious assailants. He was also slowly cleaning his talons with a scrap of cloth whilst ruminating on what he'd just learnt from the now-deceased leader of the thugs. He wasn't concerned about him, he'd simply known too much and, knowing his kind all too well, Jericho had realised that after the initial shock had faded the brute would have looked for revenge or gone blabbing his mouth. Neither course of action had been acceptable. At the same time the lesser thugs would get the message, if they could even remember much after the beating they'd taken.

All in all the information hadn't been that important. The thug had simply said that Janet performed wherever she could trying to get a more permanent deal. The only one who knew where she'd be in advance was a sparrow called Frankie. Nobody knew where he lived except it was in the jungles surrounding Rio. Not exactly a great deal to work with and not much more than he'd already been able to guess.

So imagine his surprise when a plain brown bird flew straight overhead making a beeline for one of Rio's beaches and more importantly said line lead right back to the jungle, not the normal habitat of sparrows. Perhaps this wouldn't have concerned Jericho but given his lack of options and the seemingly perfect coincidence he decided it was worth investigating. On that thought he flew into the air until he was trailing the sparrow with the sun at his back. On the off chance his target looked back he would be hidden in the suns glare.

It wasn't long till he saw his quarry reach the beach and slow down clearly looking for something that he realised just how lucky he'd been. The sparrow in question, who Jericho now presumed to be the elusive Frankie, made a beeline towards some rocks in the more isolated are of the beach. There Jericho could just make out two in distinctive yellow blurs. _'It must be them'_ he thought with a start. Against the odds he'd managed to track down Janet and her brother.

Now came the hard part. He couldn't just kidnap them in broad daylight. Even if he could he'd have to do so without hurting them as Bruno had stated. No, it would be far easier to seperate them. _'The only question was how'_ he thought as he settled down on an rooftop to watch and wait.

**Author's note: Hi everyone, sorry about the immense time between updates but it is difficult to muster the enthusiasm at the moment. Hopefully things will pick up further into the story but no promises. Anyway, as always feel free to PM or leave a review and I'll see you in the next chapter.**


	4. Closing in

**Author's note: Hi Everybody Strykeruk here. Sorry about the massive gaps between updates. This is gonna be a text heavy chapter as there isn't much actually happening but I had to figure out a way to get the story where I wanted it going.**

They'd managed to get Pedro out of the sand quite quickly. Apparently it hadn't been that deep and Pedro had been able to pull himself out after only a little sand was removed. After a small dash away from the slowly approaching people they'd settled down with all apparently forgiven. Frankie had just alighted down on the sand again when Pedro cleared his throat.

"Well I think it's time for that swim." He said stretching. "Who's game?"

"You bet!" Replied Nico "Race you!" he shouted before zipping toward the water and leaving Pedro surprised. He quickly recovered and charged after Nico.

Janet chuckled. "I have no idea where he gets the energy. Me I'm happy relaxing in the sun." Frankie could only nod in agreement as she proved her point by reclining backwards. However she quickly sat up again clearly struck by a thought.

"Hey Frankie, how's the search for a partner going?" She asked. Frankie sighed inwardly. Ever since losing to Nico a year ago Janet had hoped to find a singing partner to level the playing field. The problem was, like Pedro before her it wasn't a simple case of just finding a good singer, there were plenty of those. It was more complicated as they needed to have a good chemistry on stage. The only person who was close was Flora but she was already part of a group.

"It's tough." He replied but seeing her expression fall he quickly tried to change the mood. "But hey it's carnival! If ever there was going to be a time to find a partner this is it."

"I suppose" She replied but Frankie could see she wasn't convinced.

"Tell you what, if I find anyone I'll direct them to the Branch, it seems to be one of your more regular haunts. I'll even go home and note it down." He started to stretch and stand up to go.

"Are you sure?" Janet said "You only just started relaxing."

"It's fine, I needed to get some things done anyway". He gave his best reassuring look. "honest."

Janet finally seemed to relent but just as Frankie turned to leave something occurred to her. "How will I know if you do find someone. I can't rely on you telling me."

"Don't worry I'll give the backstage guy at the Branch, Jasper I think, a password. He's got a good memory." Frankie said.

"Sounds good" Replied Janet "I'll probably head over there later, the rest is nice but I can relax when Carnival is over" she said with a smile.

"Awesome, hopefully I'll catch you later." Frankie finally finished before launching upwards and heading for home.

XXX

Jericho sat patiently watching the entire conversation from his perch on the shorefront. Lip reading was a difficult art from this distance but it was a skill he'd perfected over time. It had helped him gather all the information he needed, to know he should follow the sparrow carefully. Therefore when it took flight Jericho spared one more glance at his canary quarry before heading off in pursuit. As before the sparrow didn't seem overly concerned about potentially being followed only making a couple of detours, plenty to lose any casual followers, Jericho however was not easily eluded and effortlessly kept pace. Fairly soon they arrived at small clearing in the jungle wherein the sparrow landed outside a tree hollow before casually entering.

"_So this is where the famous Janet and her relations hide?" _Thought Jericho to himself. It was certainly secluded. He looked at the hollow where the sparrow had entered and decided that he'd take the time to do some searching rather than more idle waiting. A cursory glance showed half a dozen hollows even though only 4 showed any signs of habitation. Checking the top hollows entrance to make sure the sparrow still hadn't left he darted down to the lowest habited hollow and ducked inside.

The inside of the hollow was sparsely decorated; the main feature was a single nest at the far side that was surprisingly well kept, someone clearly valued a good night's sleep. There was a small branch stuck into the wall as if to hang something on with a small cloth and what looked like polish nearby but otherwise it was clear that whoever lived here spent much more time out and about. Slightly disappointed Jericho quickly flitted to the next hollow, only slightly higher than the last, after quickly listening to make sure the sparrow was still in place.

This hollow, whilst still clearly more of a resting place rather than a home, was far more cluttered than the last. There was what appeared to be memorabilia from competitions against one wall whilst there were also the remains of food wrappers and containers, none of it too healthy. Jericho slowly shook his head in despair. Whoever 'lived' here clearly had body mass to spare. He was starting to get concerned at the lack of sound coming from the top hollow but nevertheless he left the hollow he was in a flew up to the penultimate one.

This hollow was on the opposite side of the clearing to the other two. Despite this it had a good view of them and it was immediately apparent that it was far more of a home. The outside branch leading into the hollow was clear of debris and the entrance itself had a curtain of leaves. Pushing this aside Jericho whistled in approval at the home he found himself in. As with the other hollow the main feature was a nest to the far side. However the major difference was in the décor. There was a small stainless steel tray propped against the wall next to the entrance which acted as a mirror of sorts. There was also a small assortment of cosmetics next to what resembled a table lent against the far wall. The table obviously doubled as a kitchen and dining space as it had dozens of talon marks from food being chopped. The nest itself was also quite well kept with barely any stray twigs pointing out of it. All in all, despite having the most in it, the hollow seemed the best utilised. Finishing looking around Jericho couldn't help but remark on the lack of noise from above.

"What the hell is that Sparrow doing?" he muttered to himself before resolving to wait just a little longer.

XXX

Janet had watched Frankie fly away before turning back to watch her brother and Pedro roughhousing in the ocean. Despite the light of the sun she could feel herself slowly drifting off to sleep in the warmth. However before she got that far she heard approaching footsteps and opened her eyes to see Nico walking over, slightly out of breath.

"Hey sis, where'd Frankie go?" he asked glancing around curiously.

"He said something important had come up that he just remembered about" She replied quickly, not wanting to give away that it was partly her fault.

"Don't worry I'm sure he'll turn up later." She added.

Nico looked at his sister resting on the sand. "And what about you? What're your plans for the rest of the day?"

"Well I had planned on taking the day of and just relaxing..." she trailed off into thought

"But?" Nico prompted, easily recognising the indecision

"but I can rest plenty after Carnival." Janet replied "I reckon I'm going to head back to the branch for the day, see if there's anything going on"

"Sounds awesome. Pedro and I are definitely chillaxing today but tomorrow it's non-stop party!"

"Hell yeah" Pedro said having wandered over and heard what Nico said. "It's gonna be poppin!" He quickly high-fived Nico making Janet chuckle.

Janet stretched making her back click. "Speaking of popping" she said with a smile before standing up.

"Well I'm off" She stated before giving Nico a quick hug and Pedro a fist bump. "I'll catch you guys around" With that she flew into the air and towards the city.

XXX

By now Jericho had gotten highly suspicious of the lack of noise coming from the above hollow. It seemed impossible that the sparrow could have gotten out without his hearing. After waiting another few minutes he decided to risk it and check for himself. To that end he carefully flew up to the edge of the last and highest, of the hollows and pressed himself against the edge of the entrance. Hearing nothing he slowly glanced around the corner only to find, to his shock that nobody was inside. The inside of the hollow was cluttered with odds and ends, trinkets and objects stacked atop each other. A small nest lay in one corner but what caught Jericho's eye was a small simple chest with a clear path through the clutter. Moving around the corner Jericho was suddenly surprised when he felt a noose tighten around his foot and hoist him into the air. Quickly regaining his wits he used his metal talons the slice through the rope that suspended him from the ceiling. Landing on his feet he ensured he wasn't in danger before examining the simple trap that had caught him out and mentally berating himself. Looking back into the hollow with a far more critical eye he quickly spotted several similar traps that lay at varying heights across the room till his destination. It was clear someone was rather paranoid, and for once rightly so.

Steeling himself Jericho took a step into the hollow over the remains of the first now defunct trap. What followed were a series of acrobatic manoeuvres that to an untrained outside observer would have seemed continuous and effortless. However the truth was that it was anything but. Jericho was well aware that triggering one trap could be passed off as someone learning their lesson and leaving, any more and instant suspicion would follow. As such every thought he had was dedicated to navigating the path to the chest. He quickly realised there was method to the seeming clutter of the hollow. Anyone larger than the diminutive sparrow (which was most) would find themselves with very little room to move and certainly not enough to fly. As such the process of working through the room was laborious and intense in the concentration required. However after what seemed like hours but in reality was but a few minutes he found himself standing in front of the solitary chest. After checking it thoroughly for any surprises he cautiously opened it.

Inside the chest was a simple notepad along with several items that meant nothing to him. Carefully he picked up the notepad and flicked through it's contents. He caught a few mentions of Janet and her brother but he didn't want to stay for too long so ignored them until he reached the last entry in the book. It explained Frankie's search for a partner for Janet. It also noted the code he'd arranged with someone called Jasper if he was successful. Jericho quickly memorised the code before closed the pad and putting it back in the chest and closing the lid gently. Checking that he hadn't left anything behind he noticed a small recess in the nearby hollow wall. Pushing it open he realised it was how the Sparrow had left without him noticing as it led straight to the outside. Making sure no one was watching he made to leave when the recess snapped shut rapidly behind him. Checking himself he couldn't see any damage so he promptly decided to take his leave and flew off.

Back inside Frankie's hollow the recess had snapped back into place leaving no trace of having been used, except that is, for a single bright yellow feather that slowly drifted to rest on the ground.

**Author's note - Hi everyone, sorry this took soooooo long to publish. One problem was simply being busy. Another is that I just couldn't figure out what to write in order to get the story moving the way I wanted it to. Hopefully you don't mind the text wall haha.**

**Anyway, as always feel free to leave a review or PM me any questions.**

**Strykeruk out.**


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